One of my favorite things to do when traveling to a new city is to check out the local museums. Beyond something to do, it’s a great way to immerse yourself in the history of that city, and I always try to visit at least one when I’m in a new place. Living in New York City, I have access to lots of great museums, but one of my favorites has to be The Frick Collection. Located on the Upper East Side in Henry Clay Frick’s former home, this museum combines his personal collection with acquisitions that reflect his preferred art styles. Below are some of the best reasons to visit The Frick Collection (in my mind)!
Reason 1: The Frick Collection is manageable
With a lot of large museums, art or otherwise, it can feel like almost a chore to see everything you want. Running from one wing to another just to make sure you see everything you want to before moving on to your next adventure can really wear you down. Not so with the Frick Collection! With only 10 galleries, you likely to see the whole museum in under two hours, and not feel rushed to cram everything in. I recently went to check out the Pierre Gouthière: Virtuoso Gilder at the French Court exhibit, and even after spending some time looking at that, I still had the stamina to walk through the rest of the permanent collection.
Floorplan of The Frick Collection, courtesy of frick.org
Reason 2: Great Items on Loan
Another great reason to visit the Frick museum is their collection of pieces on loan to them. This is a great way to see art from museums around the world that you might not have the opportunity to see. This is something that all museums do, but I’ve seen some great works, like The Goldfinch by Carel Fabritius and Girl with a Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer, up close and personal!
Girl with a Pearl Earring, by Johannes Vermeer
Reason 3: The Frick is Quiet
One thing not common to all museums is quiet–some of the larger museums in New York City have the ever-constant din of people talking and chatting, which isn’t a problem, it’s just not the vibe at the Frick. This is also my top reason in this list of reasons to visit the Frick. If you’re looking for a quiet way to spend a couple of hours, this place can’t be beat. Additionally, cameras and selfie sticks are banned from the galleries, allowing you to enjoy the artwork without jostling with photographers.
NOTE: Because the museum uses very few barrier and stanchions to separate viewer from art (in an attempt to retain the home-like atmosphere), children under the age of 10 are not permitted.
The Garden Court, image courtesy of seniorplanet.org
Reason 4: The Frick Museum Can be Cheap!
While normal admission is $22, and it’s not a participant in Bank of America’s Museums on Us program, you can still see the whole museum for cheap, if you know when to go!
(READ MORE: Bank of America Museums on Us 2017 Dates and Locations)
The museum host “First Fridays” on the first Friday of every month, and from 6pm-9pm, you can get in free of charge! The Free Fridays for 2017 are:
- January 6th
- February 3rd
- March 3rd
- April 7th
- May 5th
- June 2nd
- July 7th
- August 4th
- September 1st
- October 6th
- November 3rd
- December 1st
Along with free admission, visitors have access to talks and lectures, music and dance performances, and open sketching in the Garden Court.
Additionally, Sundays from 11am to 1pm is “pay as you wish” admission, meaning you could get in for only a dollar! Museums in New York City can be expensive, but if you know when to go, they don’t have to be!
4 Reasons to Visit The Frick Collection Conclusion
Without a doubt, The Frick Collection is one of my favorite places to spend time in New York City. I hope these reasons to visit the Frick have inspired you, and if you find yourself on the Upper East Side, do yourself a favor and check out this great museum!
Header image courtesy of user Gryffindor via Wikimedia
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Dan Miller travels with his wife and 6 (SIX!) children. He loves to help families travel for free / cheap, especially larger families. If you are looking for help, drop him an email at 
After many trips to NYC, I tried the Frick at the recommendation of friends. I used the iPhone audio guide. To each his own, but I thought it was fair. Truthfully the home itself intrigued me more than the art. It was a short visit and kind of expensive. I don’t know that I’d recommend it personally unless you’d been to NYC a lot and were looking for things to do. Maybe I’m not cultured enough to appreciate it more. But the house itself was cool anyway.
Ever since I was a college student here in NYC, The Frick was one of my favorite museums as well. To me, it felt more like visiting someone’s old mansion and simply seeing the masterpieces he owns. It has a lot more character than other NYC museums, in my opinion. After all, it was the home of Henry Frick! I try to go in the fall every year as the mansion actually reminds me of one of those haunted mansions.. 😉
If you love art, The Frick is amazing. This was a man’s private collection – Holy S**t!
The house was designed to display the art to its best advantage. Most of it is still as Frick displayed it. There are two Hans Holbein the Younger (the guy who painted Henry the 8th’s court portraits) portraits on either side of a fireplace of Cromwell and the Bishop of Canterbury. They were rivals in Henry the 8th’s court. If you watched Masterpiece “Wolf Hall”, you can see their rivalry play out and a scene of Holbein painting Cromwell’s portrait. That’s just one example of how extraordinary this private collection is – Rembrandt self-portrait, Vermeers, on and on.
I live in Pittsburgh (where Frick made his fortune) a few blocks from his home here, which is now part of the same museum. The art here doesn’t hold a candle to the art in NYC, but the house is very cool.
If you have a museum membership in your hometown that is part of the North American Reciprocal Museum Association (NARM), you get into the Frick for free with reciprocity. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a member, too. Our hometown memberships have paid off big time when we travel.